Or, in the original French:
"Il pese les œufs de mouches dans les toiles d'araignées."
This was Voltaire's way of insulting one of his fellow playwrights, Marivaux, who was known for paying close attention to the dialogue and language of his characters. In many of Marivaux's works, nearly every word has a second significance or meaning, and it is this constant jeu des mots, (play on words), and attention to every minute detail, that Voltaire is mocking. | 
